Luer connections are the typical way of attaching various medical devices such as syringes, catheters, and intravenous lines to one another. These lines are then generally connected to a patient via a catheter. In a typical luer connection, male and female connectors are mated together to form and secure the connection. Luer connections are widely used in the medical industry because they are quick and easy to assemble.
However, with this ease of use comes a high risk of error. For example, in high risk connections, such as epidural lines, the connection of an incorrect line can have serious consequences, including death, for the patient. There is a high risk of accidentally connecting the wrong lines because standard luer connectors are used for both intravenous fluid and epidural infusions. Also, additional lines are commonly found near bedsides of patients seeking medical care for a variety of ailments. Thus, a male connector intended for use with an intravenous line could be easily confused for one intended for use with an epidural line. This confusion can lead to a misconnection, resulting in medication or air erroneously being delivered into an unintended site, leading to serious complications.
Currently, precautions for misconnections include double-checking the connection prior to connecting the luers. Alternatively, the different connectors and their attached lines may be specially labeled. Labeling may be accomplished by placing colored tape on the tubing, or placing a color-coded marker on the connectors themselves.
While these precautionary measures attempt to solve the problems of misconnections, all of these precautions require an active, mitigating step. This can be problematic and unpractical for nurses and doctors who are often working in emergency situations and do not have the luxury of performing time-consuming cautionary steps.
Thus, there is a real need for a connection that ensures the line will remain closed until the correct connectors are connected. This will mitigate the risk of misconnecting male and female luers, and it requires no additional steps by hospital personnel to avoid misconnections.